Posted for QSK due to him not being able to at this time... Pol.
Author's Notes:
I will blatantly be using a portion of the Buffy Episode Chosen in this chapter, just changed from script form and made to fit with what has previously occurred in this story. It was used due to the fact that it dovetails nicely with where this is going and no insult to the original writers is meant or implied.
Buckle up people, the ride's going to get bumpy from here.
Feedback please... I do get to read some of it... and it does help.
Callie... for some reason my emails aren't getting thru to you or yours aren't reaching me... Hope you're doing well.
QSK
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CLAP CLAP CLAP
Xander and Dru's heads snapped around and looked at the figure standing at the foot of the bed.
She could feel the shudder course thru his body as they looked Caleb standing there with a mocking look on his face.
"Well, look at this, Judas and Mary Magdalene in bed together. The Traitor and the Whore. Will wonders never cease?"
Even as Xander started to rise from the bed Caleb's features blurred to that of a lanky brown haired teenager.
The first thought that actually managed to make it through Xander's head was: Oh shit. I've finally hit the big times... a visit from the First. But, what came out of his mouth was a very plaintive "Jesse..."
"Well...Damn bro, I'm surprised you even remember my name."
"You're not Jessie." Xander's face paled as he watched the form of his old friend start to pace around the bedroom.
"Actually, yea, I am. I mean, yea, I'm the First, but I'm also Jessie. Go ahead Xan-man ask me a question... Your favorite snack: Twinkies. Fav movie: Star Trek II. You peed in Harmony's lemonade glass when we were twelve." Jessie stopped with a sour look on his face "Didn't improve her attitude though." He muttered.
Jessie slowly wandered over and started looking at the photos sitting in their frames on Xander's dresser. "Hmmmm... Let's see... Murdering Witch, Necrophiliac Slayer, Homicidal Slayer, Inhuman green ball of Energy, Mass- murdering ex-Vengeance Demon, Cordelia... Great taste in women bro." The First in Jessie's form slowly turned and peered hard at Drusilla who sat there quietly, next to Xander. "Oh yea, great taste in women. Here you go and flip Buffy nine kinds of shit for the last six years for being with Angel and now you're sleeping with his childe... I always knew you were a hypocrite."
Xander started to open his mouth but Jessie continued on. "Cordy... One normal human out of the whole bunch. 'Course she didn't stay human now did she bro? Oh. Wait. Willow was normal once too wasn't she? You know, Willow? The one you saved while leaving me to Darla? Yea... Willow was normal 'till you got her hooked up with Buffy."
The First looked down at them from the foot of the bed where he stood. "And now here you are... safe in the arms of your little Vampire. Yea... Right. You're going to die all alone Xander. The last of your line. Your little bitch here will repudiate you and you'll die as plain old Zeppo-Xander. Useless and unwanted."
Seeing the look on Xander's face the First pressed its case. "What? You mean she didn't tell you that the Claiming could be repudiated? Aww... Guess you didn't read the fine lines on the contract Xan-man. All she has to do is drain you and you're finished. Kaput. Deadite. Then she's back to being normal and you're just a dead piece of meat with a demon playing house."
Again Xander started to make a comment but then he stopped and simply leaned back against the headboard of the bed, drawing Dru into his embrace and holding her by his side.
"You'll be dead and gone and then it'll be down to good old dependable Buffy." Jessie continued blithely. "The Slayer... the One girl in all the world who will fight the forces of evil all alone. You did finally figure that out didn't you bro? They fight alone and they die alone. It's what they do, there ain't a damn thing you can do to change it, and I'm going to be the one to nail the final nail in the Slayer's coffin."
Jessie's diatribe finally wound down and he looked at Xander expectantly. "What, no comments? No typical Xander whit?"
"Oh. Are you done now?" Seeing the shocked look on the face of his old friend Xander continued. "You know, it's kinda a good thing that you went and showed up here wearing Jessie's face to try to demoralize me." Seeing the perplexed look on the First's face Xander laughed out loud. "Good 'cause considering what you just tried to lay on me, you are so full of shit, your eyes would have to be brown like his."
Jessie's mouth literally dropped for a second after hearing Xander's words.
"You may be wearing Jessie's face and you may have access to his memories, but you're not Jessie. Just like I'm not that same kid who had to stake his best friend's demon-inhabited body."
Xander got up out of the bed and started getting dressed while Drusilla was content to sit back and watch her kitten at work.
"Darla killed Jessie, and I had to kill the thing that wore his face." Xander looked up at the thing wearing his friends face now. "You got the memories of people that have died right?" Not even waiting for it to reply he continued. "Then remember what I told Angelus, asshole." Xander grinned at the First and then continued. "You're gonna die. And I'm gonna be there."
Jessie's face grew flushed and he started spouting off. "You fool. Your precious Buffy is going to get you all killed. How many more times do you think can you bring her back from the dead? You're all going to die and she's going to be the one to bring you down!"
"Yadda, yadda, yadda. Blah, blah, blah. You really need to do something about that constipation, 'cause you really are full of shit, you know that?"
"You're going to die all alone, just like your precious Buffy." The First all but spat at him "She's going to drag you down and get you killed." The First spared a glance over at Drusilla as if to prove his point.
Xander stopped even trying to get dressed as he stood up straight and just laughed at the First. Scarily enough, his laugh held more than just a bit of the Hyena in it. "You talk all this crap and you can't do a damn thing. Your Preacher man is dead. How many more of your blind mice do you have running around?"
The First only grinned back at Xander. "You think that all I have are my Bringers? More the fool you are. My Turok-Han will destroy you all..." The Firsts voice trailed off and it looked pensive for a moment, as if it had said more than it really wanted too.
Then just as suddenly as it had appeared, it was gone.
"Drusilla... is it gone?" Xander's voice was rock steady as he looked around the room.
"Yes, kitten. The Bad One is gone."
"Are you sure?" This time Xander's voice held more than a bit of tremulousness in it.
"I am sure my Alexander." No sooner had the words left her mouth than Xander slammed into her hugging her for all he was worth. She'd already had her arms open and waiting for his arrival in anticipation of his need.
Quietly at first, and then slowly with greater force, Alexander LaVelle Harris cried, all the while held in the caring arms of a Vampire who loved him more than he would ever realize.
"Shhh... It's okay love... It's okay... I am here... I'll always be here for you."
Slowly, between the sobs, she could hear him mumbling to himself. Jessie's name predominated the earliest words with Willow's name appearing occasionally. Once she distinctly heard him say something about 'Not giving the prick the satisfaction.' and she knew that Xander would rather have died than to let the First know that it had affected him. Silently cursing the great evil inside of her head she made sure she continued to hold her kitten for as long as he needed.
Some ten minutes later Xander finally pulled away from her a bit, his eyes red and his face puffy. "What about the Claiming, Dru? Was the First telling the truth? Can you reverse it?"
Dru sat up a little straighter and stared him full in the eyes. "Yes..." And at seeing him start to look away from her she continued. "And no."
"What do you mean Dru?" He didn't pull away from her, didn't look at her in accusation, he simply looked at her and waited for her to explain. It was a simple act of trust on his part that almost caused her to cry.
"There is a way to repudiate the Claiming, but it requires sacrifice."
Xander started to draw away from her just a tiny bit and Dru could almost feel her undead heart breaking.
"Please listen kitten... please." Xander immediately reversed his direction and gathered her back into his arms, holding her tightly.
"In order to repudiate a Claiming, one of two things must happen. The Human half may voluntarily allow his Vampire half to drain him, sacrificing himself for the Vampire. OR the Vampire may allow the Human to carve out the Vampires heart and consume a piece of it, sacrificing herself for the Human. This is the only way that one half of a claiming may survive the other's demise."
Xander visibly winced at hearing Dru calmly state how the process occurred, while Dru just looked at him with sad eyes.
"What happens to the one who survives?" Xander finally asked.
"The Human would retain the benefits of the Claiming and they would actually become stronger than before. The Vampire..." Dru's voice trailed off for a moment and then she stared at him, looking him directly in the eyes. "The Vampire would become Human again, while retaining almost all of the benefits of being a Vampire and none of the negatives." Xander started to look away but her gaze held him. "But it HAS to be a voluntary sacrifice Alexander. It has to be unforced, and nothing magical or mundane may influence it. Nothing."
Xander looked deep into her eyes, searching for something without knowing exactly what he was looking for. What he saw there was what he had hoped and dreamed for, yet never expected to truly have.
Drusilla looked deep into his eyes and saw what she knew was there for her, and was content.
Silently they held each other as they drifted off to sleep.
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Across town someone else was receiving a visit from the First Evil...
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Buffy sat quietly in the dinning room staring dully at the weapon she'd dubbed a Slayer Scythe while from outside could be heard the faint sounds of Potentials training.
"Pretty, ain't it?" The First/Caleb said from across the table
"You're not him." Buffy said after calming down a bit, having jumped slightly at the sound of his voice.
"No, your boy killed him, right and proper. Terrible loss. This man was my good right arm. Course it don't pain me too much. Don't need an arm. I've got an army.
"An army of vampires. However will I fight..." Buffy was just starting to get warmed up to a proper rant when she was interrupted.
"Every day our numbers swell. But then you do have an army of your own. Some thirty-odd pimply-faced girls, don't know the pointy end of a stake. Maybe I should call this off..." Caleb walked around the table slowly, looking around as if bored with the conversation.
"Have you ever considered a cool name? I mean, since you're incorporeal and basically powerless... how about the Taunter? Strikes fear in the hearts of...
He turned suddenly and glared at the diminutive blonde Slayer. "I will overrun this earth. And when my army outnumbers the humans on this earth, the scales will tip and I will be made flesh."
"Talk on. I'm not afraid of you."
"That's why you're an imbecile. And if you're not afraid then why aren't you asleep down in the basement... in your dead lover's arms?"
Buffy's head turned involuntarily towards the kitchen and the door in it leading down to the basement.
"He can't help you. Nor Faith, nor your friends. Not your new and improved Carpenter and Certainly not your wanna-slay brigade." The mocking tone of Caleb's voice grew even sharper. "None of those girlies will ever know real power unless you're dead. You know the drill..."
Slowly Caleb's form shimmered around the edges and Buffy found herself looking at her own face.
"Into every generation a Slayer is born." Buffy heard the doppelganger start to say. "One girl in all the world. She alone will have the strength and skill to..." The Firsts voice trailed off for a moment. "There's that word again. What you are. How you'll die. Alone."
Buffy could only stare at The First, saying nothing as ideas ran rampant in her head.
"Awww... what's wrong Mary-Kate? Where's your snappy comeback for Ashley?"
"You're right." Buffy finally stated quietly.
"Hmm... not your best." The First replied.
A sudden noise from the kitchen drew Buffy's gaze away from the First for a moment and then as she looked back, The First was gone.
"Buffy?" She heard Spike's voice from the doorway. "Is something wrong?"
"No." She paused for a moment, a thought finally hardening into shape within her head and she turned to smile at him. "Yeah. I just realized something. Something that really never occurred to me before. We're going to win."
Just outside the doorway leading to the living room, the First stood there, still wearing Buffy's form. "Wanna bet, Bitch?" She said quietly.
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Upstairs, safely ensconced in her own room Dawn sat listening to her headphones and rereading some old books, trying to find that one clue that could possibly help them defeat this latest big-bad in a long line of big- bads.
Not that she honestly thought that she would find anything new in the one she was reading right now, but as Willow had said, one never knew where an idea could come from.
Luckily (or unluckily depending on ones point of view) Dawn had an uncanny knack for many obscure languages and she was very good at researching as the large stack of books pilled up on her floor could attest to.
Drawing a new book up from a much smaller pile she started in reading it. An hour later and about halfway thru it however she stopped suddenly. This can't be right She held her fingers in between the pages and looked at the cover closely for a moment Yep, this is the Peragrum Codex... She opened the book back up to her saved page and began to reread it very carefully. The further she got however, the paler her face became. No... this can't be...
Yanking the headphones off her head she all but sprinted out the door and down the hallway to Willow's room. Not even bothering to knock, she threw the door open and rushed into the room.
Willow looked up from the ancient text she was reading as Dawn stormed in. "Dawnie... What's wrong?"
Breathlessly Dawn handed her the Codex and pointed at the page. "Y-You need to check this... Please tell me I'm translating this wrong."
Quickly, Willow read the page, and then started frowning as she reread it. Her face was just as ashen as Dawns was when she finally looked up at the younger girl.
"You didn't mistranslate it Dawn." She said quietly. "We've been set up since the very beginning."
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What? Another Cliffhanger? Shucky Darn!
QSK